Namida No Sora
by hotaru anne
Summary: It's been two years since Hitomi and Van saw each other, and a new threat looms over Gaea....*story finished!*
1. Remnants of a Memory

Well, I have to fix some things up. Enjoy!  
  
~*Namida No Sora*~  
~*An Escaflowne Fanfic*~  
  
  
Feathers.  
  
The stone of tears.  
  
The sky opening up from the heavens.  
  
Hitomi Kanzaki looked up to the view of Tokyo from her balcony at her house. The sun was setting in the sky, making the sky colours of the rainbow. The moon was appearing in the sky, a silver cresent.  
Somewhere beyond there, was Gaea.  
  
It had been a month since she had returned from Gaea, since the etheral battle. She was fatigue; she was incredibly tired. Giving up reading tarots, she now was more focused on keeping to the path rather than reading what could happen.   
  
The wind blew gently at her face.  
  
Feathers.  
  
Escaflowne.  
  
The clash of swords.  
  
Everything was like a dream to her, yet a shred of reality. The guymelufs, the various people she met, the enemies she sought, the people she loved the most. It was another world in her eyes, but the same in a sense. She wanted to stay there forever, to see more of Gaea, but they knew that they couldn't be. They were from different worlds.   
  
That was pretty dry, she thought.  
  
She remembered the goodbye scene. How they wanted to see each other's world even though it wasn't possible. She could remember his face perfectly, as if it were engraved in her mind for all eternity. How he told her that they would always see each other. The words made her want to cry. She was probably letting go of heaven. Heh. Funny.   
  
But they agreed to it.   
  
The sun was down gone from the sky, below the horizon, leaving a trail of dark light. The stars began to twinkle as the moon began to be more visible in the sky. The wind grew more fierce, whipping her hair about.   
  
It was probably for the best, she thought. I mean, the bird and the fish can't live together...they are different of the same. Van's in Gaea, an angel for crying out loud. I'm from the Mystic Moon, a simple being with abilities greater than any average girl. Oh, Van...  
  
"Hitomi?"  
  
Hitomi blinked. "Yes mother?"  
  
"It's cold out there. Come inside."  
  
"Yes mother." Hitomi looked up to the night sky once more, to the moon. But she was really looking beyond the moon. To Gaea. "Oh, Van," she whispered to the wind. "Where are you now? I wish I could see you once again. Just one more time."  
  
Suddenly, light shot down from the heavens, a choir of light particles sending her up to the clouds.  
  
The Mystic Moon hovered over the night sky of Fanalia. The stars twinkled at the velvet sky, as King Van Fanel watched from the viewing room of the newly-built palace. Below, Fanalia was still in shambles, the brinks of rebuilding.  
  
Fanalia, he mused. It's good to be home.  
  
Home. He pondered for a moment. I wonder how Hitomi is at her home.  
  
Silence. It was good he was all alone for he did not want them to see his sad looks despite the royal clothing that had adorn him. His new royal subjects didn't know how he was feeling right now at the "time of glory for Fanalia". He would have to get the glory without Hitomi beside him.  
  
It was fate that brought them together, he realized. They were brought together for a reason. And for that same reason, they had to part ways. It was not endearing, but they would have to endure. If they don't, then their acts were made in vain.  
  
Flashbacks came to him. The first time he saw her, on the Mystic Moon, running for competition. When she taught him to see the invisible guymelufs. When he saved her those countless times. Their final goodbye...He bolted his fists to the wall. This wasn't fair!  
  
It's probably for the best, he assumed. We are like water and fire. We would probably get in the way of each other's destiny...but...we shared one destiny. Would we ever meet again? He clutched the stone of tears, the pendant that had once belonged to Hitomi. He could almost feel her presence now...  
  
"Your Majesty," a servant quivered.  
  
Van sighed. "Yes?"  
  
"It's getting late, sir."  
  
"I know. I'll be up soon, thank you." He turned to the Mystic Moon that was in the Fanalian skies. "Oh, Hitomi...I wish I could see you again. Just one more time..."  
  
Suddenly, from a short distance away from the city, he could see a beam of light come out from the heavens and come down over a wooded area, just beyond the city walls.   
  
Van knew what it was immediately. "Hitomi!"  
  
He rushed out of the room like a man suddenly filled with life. His servants and other appointees looked at him oddly. Why was he acting so weird? The answer became clear when he threw down the heavy royal cloak and other fancy clothing to reveal only pants, boots and a blue sleeveless shirt.   
  
One of his appointees cried after him, "Your Majesty! Where are you going!"  
  
"To see Hitomi!" he cried and then disappeared into the night.   
  
The aging appointee was puzzled. If was not until a cat-girl emerged from behind him, yawning and rubbing one of her eyes. "Hitomi," she said warily with lack of sleep. "The saviour of Gaea...and his angel from the Mystic Moon."  
  
"Where am I?" Hitomi wondered, suddenly feeling chilly in her shorts and t-shirt. She shuddered, remembering what her mother told her, as she looked around. Trees. Woodland. This was certainly not Tokyo. She looked up in the sky to see the stars twinkling and---  
  
The earth and the moon?!  
  
Now she shivered. She was on Gaea. She knew it. She could feel it. Now she was confused; how did she get to Gaea? True, her pendant was no longer around her neck and she no longer practiced Tarot foretelling and fortune-telling. So how was she transported to Gaea?  
  
Van's mother. Of course! Her ability to make thoughts in energy!  
She twisted her lips. "Great, Hitomi! This is what you get for thinking about him, again!" she told herself. She folded her arms, now ignoring the cold. "Hmm...I might was well do what Dorothy does to get back to Kansas...think happy thoughts and click my heels...no, wait, happy thoughts comes from Wendy in Peter Pan...my brain's freezing."  
  
She closed her eyes and sighed. Ok, relax, think of home...  
Horse hooves.  
  
Hitomi's eyes snapped open and darted to her left, turning slowly. A horse was galloping towards her. It made her wonder; what was this person doing, riding his horse in the middle of nowhere? Better yet, why? She swallowed dryly and watched as a young man was bounding up and down on the saddle, yelling something. As the horse got closer, she could hear the words.  
"Hitomi!"  
  
She blinked. The voice...it was so familiar, like from a dream.  
  
"Hitomi!"  
  
She didn't know what came over her, but she yelled, "Van?"  
  
The horse now had galloped to a stop. She could now see him a little more clearly, with the moonlight coming down his shoulders. He had dark hair and wide eyes, but what would normally be the arrogant and kind pride in them were replaced with a sense of weariness and aching longing. She blinked; he looked different in a sense. She watched as he got down from his horse and walk up to her slowly.  
  
They didn't say anything for a few moments. They just looked at each other.  
She still looks like the same girl that Van had returned to the Mystic Moon last month. Funny, it felt like an eternity. He looked into her eyes, mystic eyes, and saw a more older Hitomi. He could feel something, something strong, and he wanted to plead her never to leave again. But it would be selfish of him. He felt like a child whose friends ran away from him. "Hitomi," he breathed.  
  
"Van," she said softly.  
  
Before she knew it, she was locked in a tender embrace with Van. She blinked back tears to realize that he was hugging her just as tight as she was. She slowly slipped her hands from him and smiled at him gently. "It's been a long time, Van."  
  
For the next hour or so, they walked around the wood area. Van had one hand around the reins of his horse and the other was clasped with Hitomi's. Van talked about the rebuilding of Fanalia, and the Court that talked him half to sleep. Hitomi talked about her life now back at her home. They went to a cliff top which gave an overview of Fanalia, the proud joy of Van. Above, the stars twinkled, hundreds and thousands of them, around the Mystic Moon, her home.   
  
Hitomi looked at him keenly, watching his eyes dance at his achievement. It made her feel happy inside. Looks like he's been busy, she thought. Van met her gaze, and, as if looking into her soul, she turned away, blushing mad.  
Okay, Hitomi, steer off, steer off! she thought. Iceberg, dead ahead! "Um, Fanalia looks beautiful!" she said with false cheer, while inside, she droned, Oh, great, what a lame throw-off. Now he's going to think that you're a complete idiot!  
  
He looked slightly dazed as he said, without taking his eyes off hers, "Yes, it does, dosen't it?"  
  
She blushed madly again. "Yah," she agreed.  
  
Silence.  
  
Oh, great, now what? Van thought miserably. Tell the truth seemed to be the right thing to do. He turned back to Hitomi, who was still gazing serenely at Fanalia. "Hitomi," he said softly. "I have to confess something. I...I really, really, miss you."  
  
She raised a brow, wanting some more depth in that.  
  
He sighed; this wasn't easy. "Ever since you left," he began slowly, "I couldn't think about a lot of things except you. Yah, sure, the rebuilding and the menaces kept me straight in line these days, but when I'm alone, my mind wanders. Wanders to the fields where the battle rose and then to the Mystic Moon itself. Mystic Eyes is all I can think of."  
  
She smiled kindly as she lifted heer hand to examine the stone of tears still hanging around his neck. "I see you still wear the necklace," she observed keenly, looking up at him.  
  
Eyes meeting...  
  
Van lifted his hand to brush some small leaf that attached to her face,   
before leaning over to kiss her. Hitomi felt like she was flying.   
  
Funny, Van thought, I never thought I'd be doing this.  
  
Hmm, Hitomi thought, not bad. Suddenly, she felt a pang in her heart, a sharp sensation, a sensation that told her that sorrow was nearby. No, she thought, I'm going to lose him again, ain't I? Because of the thought, she began to sob, just at the middle of the kiss.  
  
Van broke the kiss to see tears flow down her face. "Why, Hitomi?"  
  
She sobbed, putting her hand up to her eyes to wipe away the tears. "Oh, Van!" she cried. "I wish I could stay, I really do. My heart and soul says it so. But I cannot walk away from my family, my friends, my world...I would give them up if there were no consequences involved." She sobbed again with such agitation.  
  
Van couldn't bear to see her so unhappy. True, he had the same thoughts as she did, and he could not walk away for his own happiness' sake. He placed his hands on Hitomi's thin arms. "I would too, Hitomi," he told her softly. "But we cannot. We are bound by our worlds, and as much as we want to be together, we are from different worlds. I'm not trying to sound discouraging, but I don't know if there'll be a chance."  
  
Silence.  
  
The flickers of the fires below.   
  
"I have to go soon, don't I?" Hitomi whispered.  
  
"Yes."  
  
She looked up to him, tear-rimmed eyes. "One favour."  
  
"Anything."  
  
"I want to see your wings, one more time."  
  
This brought a blush to his cheeks and a cryptic smile on his lips. He stepped back slightly, and with a twitch of determination, his pure white wings flashed from his back like a dove. It was pure white, white as snow, long and graceful. Feathers were blown in the wind as she gasped slightly. He was truly an angel.   
  
Hitomi reached out and grabbed a feather.   
  
Van went closer again to her and planted a light kiss on her lips. "Now you must go, Hitomi," he whispered just over the wind. "I will always remember you and I will always look up to you, wherever you go in your world." He traced her cheek with his hand. "And maybe, maybe one day, we'll see each other again. Like this."  
  
Suddenly, a choir of light particles surrounded Hitomi and stretched to the night sky. She looked around her in bewilderment and then focused on Van. He raised his hand and waved, standing back slightly. She could tell he didn't find it easy either.   
  
"Go, Hitomi, my Mystic Eyes!"  
  
"Van---"  
  
And then, she found herself in the balcony of her home, holding the feather.  
  
***I walked so long, I can't remember/Where was my home?/  
Their distant faces fade away/ I'm always on my own/  
I can show a smile/ it's not hard to do/  
I can have this time/ to come on/  
But sometimes I wanna let go of everything......***  
"You're Not Alone"---Sakamoto Maaya and Shanti Snyder  
  
~*End of chapter 1*~  
Is this the end yet? Nope, there will be another chapter. Maybe not now, but soon, in the near future. 


	2. Rising of a Foreign Card

Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!   
  
~*Rising of a Foreign Card*~  
~Namida No Sora~  
  
Setting: Two years later  
On Earth  
  
"Hitomi! You can do it! You're almost there! C'mon, Hitomi!" Her best friend, Yukari, was screaming and bouncing off the stands, waving banners and ribbons like a crazy person as she watched Hitomi sprinted towards the finish line of the track line, the sun glistening down on the sunny track meet.   
  
Breathe in.  
  
You're almost there, Hitomi! You can do it!  
  
Breathe out.  
  
Her legs stretched out as she bent foward, her head plummetting towards the finish line. She felt herself flying---she never felt such a feeling in years---towards the finish line. Her competition seemed to have disappeared as she sped like a horse to the finish line. She could feel the thrill as she stepped on the white chalk line, the smoke billowing as her arms gave out, her breaths shallow.  
  
"Yay! Hitomi!" Yukari shreeked.   
  
Hitomi smiled and waved at the stands as she walked back slowly. Although she felt overwhelmed by her achievement, she was feeling sort of down. Yah, sure, this would be the final year she would run at the track meet, but there was something else...something missing in her life...was it passion? Why was she all void inside, in some odd, twisted way?  
  
She had grown up, and she was proud to say so herself. She was no longer the timid and helpless damsal in distress that she was a few years before. She was stronger now, and she could do anything herself, without any help. Her hair was now chin-height and she probably grew a couple of inches. She always considered the thought that she always felt protected because Van's mind and thoughts were always around....  
  
Yukari met up with Hitomi at the benches, where her things were waiting. "Wow, that was an awesome run! Ever since junior high, you've become a lot stronger and faster. It's like you're running away from something...but then again, maybe it's your style. I don't know, but whatever it was, it was great. It was awesome."  
  
Hitomi nodded. "Thanks."  
  
Yukari continued to babble about how great Hitomi was at the run, but Hitomi was half paying attention. She was still musing inside about what was really wrong with her. She always felt down now, no excuses.   
  
"Say, Hitomi!" Yukari said brightly. "Amano just got a new car...a beautiful sports car. Nice and fast...he's gonna take me out for a cruise this afternoon. Say, do you wanna come?" She fluttered her eyelids. "C'mon, Hitomi, it'll be fun!"  
  
One side said she should go with Yukari and see this car for herself, see how fast it can go---*but Escaflowne can go faster*---and to admire the sleekness of the design. The other side pleaded that something was up inside, somewhere, and that she needed to tend to it. Hitomi was torn between duty and desire...  
  
"Well, Hitomi, what'll it be?" Yukari asked.   
  
Hitomi wilted. "Well..." she started.   
  
"Hitomi!" Yukari shouted angrily. "I can't believe you. These past couple of weeks...you've been soooooo distant, as if something is bothering you. Every time I ask, you say it's nothing. Well, you know what? Something is up, and I can sense it....I don't believe that it's just "nothing"." She threw the towel at her. "Go do whatever it is you are thinking of doing, and leave your poor friend outta it." With that, she stomped off.  
  
"Yukari!" Hitomi cried, but she was gone.   
  
She sulked at the bench. What was wrong with her? Why did she feel so vunerable all of a sudden? She never felt this lonely since---since---that was it! The reason she was feeling down lately was that she hadn't seen Van in her thoughts lately!   
  
She frowned. What was wrong? Has Van finally forgotten her?  
  
"I'll never forget you!"  
  
"Go, Mystic Eyes!"  
  
She looked up in the clear blue sky. Van....where are you?  
  
  
On Gaea  
  
"Sire, you are almost eighteen cycles old," the minister pleaded. "Isn't it time that you must look for a mistress to tend to the castle? The law states that---"  
  
"I don't give a damn about the law."  
  
The minister seemed visibly startled as he tried to calm down the young king. "Your Majesty," he started, "but that is the law. Your father and your sire before your father and before him has followed the decree. You are no exception to the law. It is sacred and every heir to the throne of Fanalia must follow it---"  
  
"Times change."  
  
The minister was getting weary. "Your Majesty---"  
  
"Leave me be."  
  
After a moment's thought, the minister left the council room, leaving the young king to his thoughts. King Van Fanel was looking at his reflection in the mirror, musing at himself at how much things had changed. Fanalia was now complete and whole again, and as king, he governed to the best of his ability.   
  
He was no longer the scrawny and brash prince he was when he was younger. He had grown up quite a lot these past few years, his hair slightly longer now and more manly features. The only thing he still lacked was the muscle in his body, for his arms remained as scrawny as they were a few cycles before. He still wore Hitomi's pendant and always had a thought to protect her no matter what...  
  
Even if he was being forced for marriage?  
  
He shook his head. Times were changing and getting more difficult. So many things were coming around and trouble seemed to be lurking amoung them lately...it was just waiting to hit them over the heads sometime.   
  
"Your Majesty?"  
  
Van whirled around. "Minister Jaro, I thought I told you---yes?"  
  
The soldier nodded stiffly. "Sir, a knight is here, wishing to speak to you."  
  
"S-Send him in," Van stammered.  
  
A moment later, a knight appeared, with long blonde hair and a tall dimension. He was wearing the latest Asturian design of powder blue and was a lot more built than Van. He looked like a man that many girls would swoon for...and he was no exception. His presence made Van stiffen visibly.  
  
The blonde man bent down. "Your Majesty, I am Sir Allen Schezar from Asturia, sending a message to the King of Fanalia from His Majesty in Asturia."  
  
"Allan, long time no see," Van said softly.  
  
Allan did not look up, but simply kept his head down. "The King of Asturia wishes to send a message, in regards to the seas. He says that a new power is rising and wishing to take over all of Gaea. He does not know the origin of this new power, but it is incredibly strong and attacked the frontlines out at sea. No survivors. Heavy casualties. He wishes support from the surrounding kingdoms, including Fanalia."  
  
Van looked towards the window, where Fanalia prospered. A new enemy? he wondered. No, no...I don't want to fight anymore. I just want to live again a peaceful life, a life that dosen't involve the chaos of war...I nearly lost my life fighting, I nearly lost my mind. And now, some fool wishes to fight for the sakes of what? Power? Control?   
  
Hitomi....  
  
"Your Majesty?"  
  
Van looked back at him, blank. "Hmm?"  
  
"The response, Your Majesty?"  
  
Van looked down at the floor, then back at the window facing the kingdom. The kingdom he was born into. The kingdom he fought for. The kingdom in which he had burdened for over three cycles. The new threat was a threat not only to Asturia, but his kingdom, and all the others. Gaea was threated. But what should he say? Save his skin or save the world he knew? What would Hitomi do in a situation such as so?  
  
"Tell the King, His Majesty, that I will send support to the frontlines."  
  
Allen nodded and then excused himself.   
  
Van cocked his head to one side, in mild confusion, and then started walking out the council room to the corridors where his soldiers stood, stiffened. He turned to a nearby consellor who was running towards him. "I will be leaving," he simply stated.   
  
"Where to, Your Majesty?"  
  
"To Asturia."  
  
Hitomi.....  
  
  
"Fate is coming to a steep turn in this day and age," the man said. "I must make sure that the cards are right and that the future would be steered in such a direction that not even the strongest dragon or the strongest star can stop. I will ensure that my destiny comes, or I might as well die for it."  
  
"Sir?"  
  
The man looked up, tipped his head to one side, then said, "Prepare the troops. We're coming in."  
  
"Aye."  
  
***No man of woman born/  
Coward of brave/  
can shun his destiny***  
~Homer, "Iliad" VI  
  
~End of Chapter~  
Ooohhh...who's the new bad guy? Please R&R! 


	3. Fallen Angels

Here's the next chapter! ^_~  
~*Fallen Angels*~  
~Namida No Sora~  
  
On Earth  
  
"Hitomi-chan, you're still here?"  
  
She turned around to see Shuken standing near the benches, a short distance away from where Hitomi was standing, ready to run like she never ran before, for the finals that was a few weeks from now. She looked down at her watch; it was almost six thirty and the sun was sinking. "Oh, I didn't know."  
  
Shuken smiled as she tossed Hitomi a towel. "No praw."  
  
Hitomi caught the towel mid-air and wiped her sweat-streaked face. "Time passes by when you practice nice and hard," she said softly as she sat down on the bench and began to untie her running shoes silently.   
  
"What's wrong, Hitomi?" she asked gently.   
  
"Oh, nothin'."  
  
"Don't lie," she scolded gently. "It has to do with Yukari, dosen't it?" When she saw Hitomi look at her wide-eyed, she shrugged callously. "It's not secret, really. No, she didn't tell me anything, but she wasn't the happiest camper in the world when I passed by her. She rammed into me, didn't say no sorry and stomped out like a bulldozer." She rolled her eyes. "I've seen better days, trust me."  
  
"Yukari-chan is just...uncomfortable."  
  
"At what? You being the greatest athlete and all?"  
  
Hitomi didn't respond.  
  
Shuken shrugged. "Don't worry, you don't have to tell me anything," she replied generously. "It ain't my business, anyways. So, you all pumped up for the coming track meet?" she asked, flicking something from her uniform tie and flipping her dark brown hair back.  
  
Hitomi shrugged. "I don't know, really."  
  
"Hmm...it's understandable....whoa!"  
  
The wind suddenly blew, and Shuken's skirt started to fly along with the wind, making her hold it down. Some of Hitomi's belongings went flying, including a set of cards. Hitomi reached out, managing to catch her towel, her wristband and water bottle, but the cards scattered to the ground. The wind then stopped.   
  
"Cards...what are they doing here?" Hitomi scowled.   
  
Shuken leaned over. "Tarot cards...I never saw a set before...you were a reader before?" Hitomi nodded as she bent down to help her pick them up. "Funny...only three cards seemed to be faced over while the others are all facing down."  
  
"Which cards are faced over, Shuken-chan?"  
  
"The Dragon, the Tower and...the Ace of Cup."  
  
Hitomi's eyes widened at the Dragon card. Shuken handed the three cards to Hitomi. When her fingers brushed over the Dragon card, she felt herself being pulled back into something. The colours seemed to have faded as she found herself in a battlefield.   
  
Hitomi was now gasping. "No...no...no! Not again! Not again!" she cried.  
Two large guymelfs were fighting, the swords drawn and clanking against each other. One was a dark guymelf, so dark, she thought it was pitch-dark as night. It had an evil presence surrounding it. The other guymelf was familiar...as if from a dream...  
  
The dark guymelf slammed its sword at the side of the other one, causing it to shiver and groan, a sign that the mechanism was failing. She had seen this countless of times in Gaea, every time Van struck the enemy guymelf or one of the Dragonslayers. "Get out of the guymelf!" she shouted helplessly from where she stood.  
  
A body slumped out from the mechanism, a young man her age with dark, raven hair. He fell like a wingless angel to the ground, with a loud thud. The dark guymelf retreated away from the barren battlefield littered with dead bodies, broken guymelfs and ripped banners.   
  
Hitomi ran to the fallen soldier as his guymelf fell to the ground.  
  
She was only a couple of meters away when the soldier turned over, his arms bleeding from the nips and tears that ran throughout his shirt. He was in tan pants, some boots and a long-sleeve blue-violet shirt, its draw strings pulled out to reveal a gold-chain necklace around his tanned and sweaty neck. He slowly turned so his eyes faced the sky, his voice whispering, "Hitomi."  
Her eyes widened as she screamed a name...  
  
The scene went blurry as she saw feathers. An angel perhaps?  
  
"Is love stronger than fate?"   
  
Hitomi blinked. Who said that?  
  
"Believe in your ability, Hitomi. Believe."  
  
"Is love stronger than fate?"  
  
The dream slipped away, and she was kneeling before the bench, with Shuken gathering the remaining tarot cards. She looked up to see Hitomi's sweating face and asked, "Hitomi-chan? Are you alright? Hitomi? Hitomi!"  
  
Light enveloped Hitomi's body and she disappeared.   
  
  
On Gaea  
  
"Your Majesty, is it wise to go on a guymelf?" the king asked as Van boarded a light-coloured guymeluf, inserting a Dragon's energist before entering the cockpit. The king looked indeed, slightly horrified at the scene; here was a Fanel boarding the legendary Escaflowne once again.  
  
Van could still remember the day he commissioned Escaflowne. The reasons were sort of the same, only instead of seeking revenge, he was protecting the world he lived in. The people he knew and cared and governed. He could remember the tingling sensation when he entered Escaflowne for the first time, the tension Hitomi had when she watched him enter the cockpit.   
Hitomi...  
  
He glared down at the chubby and aging king of Asturia. "Yes."  
  
"King Van, I do not think it is wise, you are still a boy after all---"  
  
"King Van!"  
  
They turned to see a young woman run towards them, dressed in the latest Asturian silks and dresses, her long, curly, blonde hair poised up in some sort of bun. She was extremely pretty; too pretty for Van's tastes. Besides, she was out of his league; after all, this was Princess Millerna. "Princess Millerna," he greeted demurely.  
  
"Van, this is too bloody for you to enter! Please, don't!" she pleaded.  
He shook his head. "I must," he replied. "The peace I helped is broken." The peace Hitomi and I helped bring upon from Lord Dornkirk and his idiotic bunch of Zaibach....  
  
"That dosen't mean you must go fight!" she told him. "Allen said---"  
  
"He said quite little, actually," he quipped as he prepared for take-off. He looked back at the striken Millerna and her father. "Leave me be. Save your breath. I will fight and you will not stop me. None of you can nor will."  
  
"But Van!" she shouted. "What about Hitomi?"  
  
That made him stop. Hitomi....He boosted the propellers. He wasn't gonna make anyone stop him. But the mention of the name made him melt backwards, into some sort of vision. So this is how she feels every time she has a vision, he thought as he found himself surrounded by screaming people from benches, watching some young girls running to a white line. He looked closely at the blonde girl who was in the lead; it was Hitomi.  
  
Oh, how you've changed....  
  
He lost the vision as he started to join forces with the other guymelfs, marching towards the shoreline and leaving the spot where Princess Millerna and her father stood.   
  
"Your Majesty!"  
  
Now what?! He turned his head carefully to the side to see another guymelf come up and flank beside him. He could see from under the faceguard the manly face of Allan Schezar. "Allan!" he called back. "So I see you will join the rest in battle!"  
  
"Same here, Van," he replied. "Though you are a fool in doing so."  
  
"Oh? Do enlighten me," Van said sardonically.   
  
"Van, you're risking your life by doing this," he reasoned with a sigh.   
  
Van flashed a glare at him. "Thank you for sharing," he replied tersely. "Apparently, that's all everyone else can say around here nowadays. It has to always deal with my safety, eh? Why didn't you tell me this years ago when I was battling against Zaibach? Tell me."  
  
Allan said nothing.  
  
"So I see," he said grimly. "I will battle. You will not stop me."  
  
The coastline was up ahead, and already he could see the millions of guymelfs standing, anticipating the battle. Van was horrified at what he saw; the guymelfs were as dark as night, pitch black, each with a squiggly insignia on their right arm of their organization. They were like a hoarding locusts together, and their armour was very, very frightening. Van felt his blood drop and his stomach a pit of butterflies.   
  
"Are you afraid now, Van?" Allan asked from his right.  
  
"N-No," Van replied as calmly as he could.   
  
The frontlines began to attack. Whatever Van was thinking, it was lost in the chaos of the battle. Van found himself striking wherever the dark guymelfs moved, which was so vaguely familiar as the ones that Zaibach once had. His vision was no longer focused as he battled.  
  
Hitomi...  
  
He could almost hear her in his thoughts, but it was so faint for im to really hear as the cries of battle was echoing in his brain like some endless waltz going around and around in his mind and outside his body. The sky was no longer blue but now a grayish-red. Every turn was fire or enemy.   
  
The line had fallen.   
  
I have to stop them, he thought as he pierced his sword through another.  
  
"Van, behind you!"  
  
Who was that? Hitomi?   
  
No, it was Allan, shouting as he fought. Van turned around to see a guymelf charge towards him. He blocked the sword and then turned, aiming for the side. The combatant was good; he blocked every move. The bloody battle raged on as he continued to fight with whatever he got. His sword was thrown out of his hand and was pierced at the side by the enemy, the slam knocking out Van's senses.   
  
"Aaaaagggghhhh!" Van cried.   
  
The mechanism shivered and creaked; it was failing on him. "Dammit, Escaflowne, help me!" he asked. But it did not obey; the mehcanism continued to go haywire on as he tried to pull himself together and try to shut down the main engine on it. No success; it was still failing.  
  
"Get out of the guymelf!" someone shouted. A girl.  
  
It sounded like Hitomi, he thought. But it can't be, she's on the Mystic Moon again. The mechanism that was wrapped around his limbs began to nip at his arms and legs. He bit his lip; this was going to hurt a lot now if he didn't get off Escaflowne now.   
  
"Dammit, Escaflowne," he muttered as he pressed a button that was on his left hand. The cockpit slowly opened and the grapplings let go of his thin body, leaving rips and tears on his shirt. His mind was too banged up and his vision was blurred that he simply slid down to the ground, too weak to do much of anything. He slammed onto the hard rock and gravel, feeling that his cheek was bruised.   
  
He felt the guymelf retreat from the scene as Escaflowne slammed to the ground a few feet away from him. Dust billowed, making him choke and his eyes stinging even further. It was getting incredibly hot from the fires nearby and the scars he bore were now oozing with blood....   
  
He heard footsteps coming. Shallow gasps. Help!  
  
He struggled to roll around and face the sky and the helper. Thank God! he thought as he groaned, pulling himself to face the sky. The sky was ash gray and blood red. The battle was over, and they lost. He felt like crying out, but his voice couldn't let him.   
  
Over his fallen body, he saw someone looming over. She was wearing peculiar clothing for someone in this area, and hair incredibly short for a girl from Gaea. She was in a tan skirt and a blouse too odd. Her hair was a honey-blonde that ran to the tips of her chin and eyes incredibly beautiful. In them, he recognized them so completely.   
  
"Hitomi."  
  
***What, so I need no mind game/  
Move my piece right off the board/  
Losing sure is easy/  
So I am no more***  
~Electrasy "Cosmic Castaway"  
  
~End of Chapter~   
I wasn't exactly the best at describing fight scenes, but anyways, read and review!!! ^^ 


	4. Reunion

Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!  
  
~Reunion~  
~*Namida No Sora*~  
  
In Asturia, Gaea  
  
Hitomi was now standing in the council waiting room of the main building, looking out the window. Asturia was so beautiful; the last time she saw Asturia was...oh, long before the war was over. Now sunshine beamed down from the sky to the city; and somewhere, out there, was the Mystic Moon, her home.  
  
"Hitomi?"  
  
She turned around to see Meruru run up to her arms in a great big bear hug. Hitomi laughed as she said, "Hello Meruru." She had changed drastically; although she was still two years younger than her, her features changed from a child to a young catwoman. Her hair was no longer puffy but more jagged and thinner than usual.   
  
"Hitomi! I thought you were back on the Mystic Moon!" she said.  
  
"Van called me back." Silence. "How is he?"  
  
Meruru's smile faded, and her eyes were now more somber. "I think he'll be okay," she told him. "I haven't really been in there very long...they booted me out straight afterwards." She frowned. "What do you mean, he called you here? How?!"  
  
Hitomi shrugged. "I don't think he really called me here," she told her slowly. "The last thing I remembered when I on Earth before I returned to Gaea, in the battlefield, was the wind blew while I was talking to my friend, Shuken, and then...the wind blew. The tarot cards fell over. Three cards were faced over..." She fumbled in her pocket and produced the three cards and showed them to Meruru. "I...I...I'm very confused, but..."  
  
The door rushed open and in rushed Allen Schezar and Princess Millerna. Millerna had her hair up in a bun, letting the curly tendrils fly off and was in a simple blue dress. Her neck was adorned by a simple gold necklace. On the other hand, Allen didn't change much, except of the more manly jaw and a slight growth of a goatee.  
  
"Hitomi! I can't believe it!" Allan gaped.  
  
"Hitomi!" Millerna said, hugging her dear friend and smiling broadly.  
  
"Allan, Millerna!" Hitomi greeted in return, bowing shortly and smiling at them. It had been so long since she saw them...what? Three years? Seeing the two of them startled her, but at the same time, she wasn't. She also noticed that neither of them wore wedding bands and weren't even making eye contact. Odd. "It's been a long time. Millerna....how are you?"  
  
"Oh, same old, same old," she responded, laughing delightfully.   
  
Meanwhile, Allen's eyes never left Hitomi; they were like a hawk's eyes, watching its prey intentfully, watching her every move. It made Hitomi uncomfortable; what did he want from him? She probably didn't tell him about herself and her feelings for Van...after all, the last time she really was able to talk to him was when he proposed to her...  
  
The talking diminished as silence erupted. Hitomi walked a short distance, to be surprised that Allen followed her to where she stood by the windows. She spun on her heel and looked straight at him. She had forgotten how tall he was..."Allen, what's wrong?"  
  
"I...I'm surprised to see you here, Hitomi-chan, that's all."  
  
She narrowed her eyes. "No, that's not the only reason," she told him gently. "I can see it in your expression, the way you look at me. Why? What's wrong?" The final words came out like a plea of anguish.  
  
He swallowed dryly as he inched closer to her. Closer and closer...Hitomi felt pinned to the wall. She was extremely grateful to learn some self-defence, but even though, she didn't want to hurt him. But his intentions were unknown to her..."To see you again...like this, all grown up..." he said slowly, "it made me realize how much I really cared for you...all these years I've wandered...Hitomi-chan...I..."  
  
The doors opened to reveal the doctor. Meruru jumped up and down, demanding all sorts of questions to the doctor as Millerna joined her, but was ignored. The doctor looked only at Hitomi. "You," he said gruffly. "Your Majesty wishes to speak to you."  
  
Hitomi was led to Van's chambers, which was much of what she suspected out of it; tapestries, curtains, shiny things and polished furniture. There was a four-poster bed that was at the side, a few meters from the window, and there sat Van, fidgiting with his bandages that wrapped his arm, forehead and pretty much all over.   
  
Concern washed before happiness. "Van! Don't take them off! You're hurt!" She rushed over to his side and pried his fingers from his bandages before looking straight at him.   
  
He blinked. "Not my fault the doc tightened them too tight."  
  
She smiled as joy washed over her as she embraced him tightly. "Oh, Van! Thank goodness you survived that fall!" she cried. "Oh, how I missed you...I never thought I'd see you again..." She smiled, breaking the tender embrace as she fought tears of joy.   
  
His blank look was replaced with a broad smile. "Hitomi..." he whispered. He then leaned forward and planted a tender kiss on her lips before embracing her again. "I've missed you so much. I have so much to tell...but you've got to help me get out of here."  
  
"But Van, you're in terrible condition..." she whispered in reply.  
  
"Listen to me, Hitomi, it dosen't matter, the wounds. There's something even worse to worry and deal about then these...there's an army that's attacking the other kingdoms. I joined the fight, in hopes that Gaea might be saved. But they're stronger tha expected...and much more horrifying from the Zaibach soldiers. I hate to pull you in on this; I know you never really liked these battles, but unless we...I...can do something, we're all going down...and Gaea will burn."  
  
"Alright. But I'm coming with you," she told him.  
  
His eyes widened. "Hitomi! I know you don't wanna see all of this, and besides, I don't want you getting hurt all because of me! This is my battle, and I don't want---"  
  
"Van, I'm old enough," she shot back, suddenly on a defensive mode. She then sighed and brushed her hair back. "I'm sorry. Van, I understand you're trying to protect me, but it's alright. Besides, if they ever found out that I let you out all like that...they'd have my head." She smiled. "C'mon. We got to get you out of here.  
  
He smiled. "Okay."  
  
  
"We have a slight problem, your Excellency," a soldier said.  
  
The man looked up from his works, clad in dark robes lined with steel. He had a ragged complextion; ruffled dark hair, a trimmed goatee, powerful jaw and a set of blazing eyes. He glared at the man carefully; the soldier shivered in fear as he was being examined. "A...slight...problem?"  
  
"Yes," the man stammered, bowing down in fear and nervousness. "It appears that there is a new card rolling around...our sources tell me that a girl appeared and saved the Dragon card from one of my men. We've ran through the history of the last Great War and found out that this is a girl from the Mystic Moon that saved Gaea..."  
  
The man looked back at his cards, laid out on the table. Why, of course... He looked down at the cards, to see that beside the Dragon card was a card he drew out unexpectedly, the High Priestess. Mystery, Potential, an unconsious awareness...to what? Between the two cards, just above, was the Lovers card. Relationship...the Wheel of Fortune was above the Lovers card, the card of destiny, a turning point...  
  
Why hadn't he seen it before?  
  
"I want them found," he rumbled. "And I want the Dragon stopped, destroyed, whatever it is you wish to happen, just ensure that it does. It appears that we have someone meddling with things over his head." He turned away from the door and contemplated in the dark.  
  
"A-And the girl, sire?" the soldier asked.  
  
The man paused. Then he said; "I want you to bring me the girl."   
  
He then lifted the High Priestess.  
  
***Don't know how it came to this/  
Just try to figure out what to do/  
How can he give you what you need/  
You think that I can not?/  
You're in a state of mind games/  
This seems like a checkmate/  
None of us will win/  
And I don't think I can wait***  
~"Mistake" Serial Joe  
  
~End of Chapter~  
Uh-oh...I guess Van and Hitomi's sappy and urgent reunion has been cut short. What's going to happen next? Don't you just hate cliffhangers? Hehehehe...sorry, folks, but it happens on the screen as well. Did some background on the Tarot readings... ^^ Please R&R! 


	5. 

Sorry I haven't added for a while---my server is goin nuts on me and frankly, i'm getting ticked off. so here i am, typin the rest up but nowhere to upload. so until i get a new server, u might not hear from me for a while. while waiting, i will be finishing off the story. enjoy!  
  
  
~The Descent of the Priestess~  
~Namida No Sora~  
  
"He's gone!!!"  
  
Meruru ran out of Van's empty chambers, sobbing and clutching the loose rags that once bound around Van's forehead and arm. Allan and Millerna looked up from their silent states to look at her. Millerna got up immediately and rushed to comfort the young catwoman. Allan was thunderstruck.  
  
"There, there, Meruru..."  
  
"Where could they have gone?" Allan mused to himself. "That baka king...pardon to the gods but Van has always been quite abrupt and irrational. First the brawns before the brains." He shook his head. "I don't know, that kid might even go back to the battlefield..."  
  
"Allan!" Millerna scolded, looking up to him with a scowl.  
  
Meruru stopped sobbing to watch with keen interest.  
  
He glared down, a bit too harshly, he added. "It is true, and you know it!" he said, suddenly defensively. "You saw how recklessly he plundged himself into battle, how irrational he was being. Risking his life like that...baka, I tell you, baka!" he finished.  
  
Wham! Millerna's hand met his cheek with a slap.  
  
"Lord Van is NOT a baka, Allan!" Meruru shouted, fierce tears coming down her face as she started wailing again.  
  
Both people were not paying attention at the sobbing Meruru, but were glaring at each other with deadly threats veiled behind their eyes, panting from the transaction. They just stood there, standing, glaring at each other, Millerna looking all angry and Allan with the flaming cheek.  
  
At the same time, a maintenance worker rushed in, panting for breath and dripping with sweat as he rushed up to Allan and Millerna, unaware of the transactions that had just occured. "Princess, Sir, there's been a breach down at the maintenance sectors."  
  
Allan walked up to the man. "What happened?"   
  
"Someone bursted in and started rampaging his way to one of the guymelufs," he responded. "He seemed to be in a darn hurry, if I may say so. One of my men tried stopping him, but he knocked him down as if he were nuthin'. Escaped the area without clearance and blew out over a dozen different machinery---do you know how much those blasted things cost?"  
  
Allan ignored the last comment. "Describe him."  
  
"Tall, lanky, dark hair, sharp eyes---"  
  
"Dammit, that's King Van!" Allan roared. "That baka...I knew it!"  
  
Millerna shoved Allan aside and looked straight at the man in the eye. Since she was taller than him (probably because of the heels), it was easier to glare down at him. "Did he have anyone with him, or was he by himself when he committed this...little exersize?"  
  
The man paused. "He was alone when he stole the guymeluf..."  
  
Sighs of relief echoed the room.  
  
"...but then, before he launched, this girl with long blonde hair and green eyes ran straight towards the guymeluf and he swooped her up before slamming through the security gates..."  
  
Meruru gasped.  
  
Millerna was thunderstruck.   
  
Allan was...well..."Dammit! Hitomi! It must've been Hitomi!" he cried, slamming his bolted fist towards the table. "I should've known...an accomplice! She must've helped him escape the freakin' room so he can grab a guymeluf...but why? Why would she help him?"  
  
"Because she loves him?" Meruru asked.  
  
Allan glared at Meruru before thinking of a question. This is absurd, he thought angrily. They are acting like children, especially Van...what is going on? Most of all..."Man," he barked. "Tell me, which guymeluf did his Majesty take?"  
  
"The white dragon, s-sir," the man stammered.  
  
"Escaflowne!" He rushed out of the room.  
  
"Allan---Allan! Come back here!" Millerna hollered after him. "Allan!"  
  
  
"Ohmigosh, I can't believe we pulled it off!" Hitomi cried as she rode on Escaflowne's dragon mode in the sunlight of the clear blue sky. She was clutching onto Van, in case she fell. She had forgotten the feeling of flying on Escaflowne, how free she felt...  
  
Van seemed tense as he held the reins to Escaflowne.  
  
"Van?" she asked softly.   
  
"Hmm?" He blinked.  
  
"What's wrong?"  
  
He shook his head. "Nothing."  
  
She frowned; he seemed distant. She could feel it in her mind, in her soul. Something was uneasy there...but she couldn't place a finger on it. She had to get some answer. "Van, something IS wrong...I can feel it." She paused briefly. "Tell me...please."  
  
He sighed. "It's those dark guymelufs I battled, the ones you saw," he told her softly. "I feel something is not right when I battled them; I never saw that squiggly silver line before...not 'til yesterday, that is. Some of the works appear to be Zaibach technology..."  
  
"But I thought Zaibach was obsolete now," she reasoned.  
  
"Yes, but their technology and people are scattered all over the place," he stated. "It's nuts, but it's the truth. Gaea is still threatened by Zaibach, even now, two cycles later. It's a crazy little world we have here and somehow, the past never lets go of us."  
  
Hitomi sighed. "There's more to it than you say, isn't there?"  
  
"I don't know," he responded truthfully. "Frankly, I've been thinking of scenerios the entire time I was lying in that room. They seem so strong...I...I can't understand it."  
  
Hitomi looked away, towards the clouds and the brilliant sun. How could a world like this be in so much trouble? she wondered. She then looked back at Van. He was looking straight ahead now, his body tense and his face distracted. Poor Van..."I see you still wear the pendant."  
  
He blushed. "Um...yah..."  
  
How sweet, she thought. Then, she felt the form of an idea swarm in her mind. "Van, give me the pendant."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Give me the pendant. I may have the answer."  
  
He nodded and slowly took off the pendant from around his neck gently. She admired the care and the patience he had taking it off; it was worth a great deal to him. He carefully placed it in her outstetched hands as she began to close her eyes and swing the pendant---  
  
Earth.  
  
Her mother sitting on the virande of their house, thinking.  
  
Shuken, watching the stars twinkle in the sky.  
  
"M-Mother, Shuken?"  
  
Yukari and Amano, driving in Amano's new sports car.  
  
"Yukari? Amano?"  
  
Feathers.  
  
Tarot cards.  
  
The Dragon and the Priestess.  
  
Hitomi was feeling dizzy. "What is going on?!" she cried.  
  
"Hitomi?" Van's voice.   
  
Hitomi was getting even more dizzy now as she was whirling in a cascade of images from Earth, the Mystic Moon, whatever. She kept on seeing her sad mother, her concerned and distracted friends. Feathers kept falling and the tarot cards kept on appearing.   
  
What is going on? she wondered. Why is this happening to me?  
  
On the reality plane, Van felt her her hands let go slowly from his waist coldly. He turned to face her with wild eyes as he shouted, "Hitomi? Hitomi! No, don't let go!"  
  
She slipped back and fell off Escaflowne, still clutching the pendant, her eyes closed in a blissful trance. It made her look like a falling angel, only she was falling to what would be her death.   
  
"Hitomi!" he shouted, pulling Escaflowne's reins and ordering it to swoon downward after her falling body in the air. "Hitomi!!!!"  
  
  
***Down to the earth I fell/  
Dripping wings/  
Heavy things won't fly***  
~"Tonight and the Rest of my Life" Nina Gordan  
  
  
~End of Chapter~  
Whoa! Flying free~will Hitomi be saved by Van? Or is something peculiar really up? R&R! Hopefully I'll get the next parts in time. 


	6. 

yes, my net server is still all messed up. i still haven't finished uploading my DA fic, this ic and i'm already in the making of a charmed fic. i can't live without my net! sorry to rant on you...anyways, yes, this is the next chapter. hitomi, as u can recall, is still falling and van is after her before she...well, you know...splats on Gaia. and trouble is right around the corner.....  
  
~The Call of the Stone  
~*Namida No Sora*~  
  
Escaflowne raced downward after Hitomi, who kept falling at an increasing rate. The wind was violently shoving upward against Escaflowne's force, but this did not stop Van from reaching his target. I have to save her, he kept telling himself. I have to...oh, Hitomi, wake up!  
  
"Mother? Shuken? Yukari? Amano? What---Why are you all so sad?" Hitomi wondered to her closest loved ones as the images kept on flooding into her mind. "Why are you not smiling? What happened? Is anything wrong? Please, why can't you hear me?!"  
  
Her mother sitting on the virande of their home. "Hitomi, where are you?"  
Shuken gazing at the stars. "What is it like up there, Hitomi?"  
Yukari and Amano in the gleaming sports car. "I hope Hitomi's alright," Amano said softly as he drove.  
  
"I shouldn't have been so mean," Yukari mumbled. "Maybe I should---"  
  
Feathers.  
  
The tarot cards falling off from the deck.  
  
Raindrops falling from above.  
  
"Believe in your power, Hitomi..."  
  
"...Is love stronger than fate?"  
  
Three dark objects looming over...a dark man wrapped in dark clothing watching intently over a table with cards laid out before him, his eyes insistent for an answer. Escaflowne fighting its way through an army. Rain from the sky.   
  
"I think I get it now---"  
  
"Hitomi!" Van yelled. "Hi---what the hell?"  
  
Below Hitomi, three dark objects suddenly uncloaking themselves. They were flying mid-air with dark metallic colours and the silver lining indicating their sect. One of them raced up and grabbed Hitomi's fraile body, making Van wince at the same moment. He watched as Hitomi woke up.  
  
"Van! Oh my God, Van! Help me!"  
  
He shook his head from the confusion. "I'm coming, Hitomi! I'm coming!"  
The one who caught Hitomi motioned the other two forward to intercept Van's coordinates. "Dammit," Van gritted as he switched Escaflowne to guymeluf mode. He drifted in the air, at least passing by the other two into mild confusion and making way towards the first one.  
  
"Van!" she cried.   
  
"I'm coming Hitomi," he muttered as he tried to ram the dark guymeluf.   
The dark guymeluf went aside, causing Van to tumble mid-air. The cockpit fighter laughed, mumbled something before cloaking again in a shimmer of metallic light and disappearing for good, with Hitomi still crying his name---  
  
"Hitomi? Hitomi!"  
  
Escaflowne was now losing the floating as it started to tumble down towards the earth. Van was now starting to panic as he desperately tried to take control of Escaflowne. He was pressing buttons and trying to change to dragon mode again. "Oh, dammit! Escaflowne---change! Please!"  
  
Van remembered; Escaflowne was still in repairs.  
  
Damn! he thought.  
  
The other two guymelufs pludged after him. A panicked Van saw this coming, whirled around with his sword drawed out, and met one of them with a slash. He heard gases hissing as the broken guymeluf steered away before exploding into oblivion.The second one came and the two fought heartlessly until Van sliced the armour to two and destroyed him. He then tumbled onto his back, falling---  
  
Suddenly, he felt his suit slam into something hard. It jarred his thoughts for a brief moment before he came to his senses. He opened his eyes to see rock on both sides. He craned his head and opened the hatch before leaping out. He looked around; it was a ship of some sort---  
  
"Van! Long time no see---oh, I should say, Your Majesty."  
  
Van turned around to see a tall man walk towards him. He wore merchant-style clothing and had long brown hair up in a ponytail and small glasses on the tips of his nose. He knew immediately who it was. "Why, if it isn't Dryden," he replied with a rueful grin. "It's been a while."  
  
Dryden grinned. "Yes, two cycles," he replied. "So...what's up?"  
  
"Too much," Van said darkly. "There's a new enemy threatening Gaea and show themselves as dark guymelufs with a metallic-lined insignia designating their clan. They are ruthless and menacing. I almost died if not Hitomi appeared---"  
  
"Waitaminute, Hitomi's here? In Gaea?"  
  
"Yes," he responded. "Until they took her, that is."  
  
Dryden nodded, taking it all in. "Hmm...the verge of another war and Hitomi's return...I'll say. You are in a lot of trouble, Van. Asturia's got a warrant out for your safe return," he told him seriously. "I know you don't wanna go back, but I can't deny anything. I'm just a merchant."  
  
"Of course, Dryden, I wouldn't want to put your ship in any trouble."  
  
"Though I have to say, I've heard of these dark guymelufs before," Dryden mused. "I can't say I have something solid, just some tales we merchants share..."  
  
Suddenly, another ship came on approach.  
  
"Who could that be?" Van wondered, shielding his eyes from the sun.  
  
"The Crusade," Dryden replied dryly.  
  
Van whirled around to face the passive merchant. "The Crusade? What the hell is it doing all the way out here?" he demanded.  
  
Dryden shrugged casually. "I certainly don't know," he responded. "But the truth is, I don't really want to know. I mean, the search for you has been conducted since late yesterday and I betcha whoever is on board, probably that stiffened knight, Allan, is not the happiest camper in the world."  
  
"Go figure," Van said glumly as the Crusade joined sides with the ship.  
  
A few moments later, Allan appeared, his long blonde hair flashing against the sunlight. Beside him, Millerna and Meruru appeared. Meruru dashed without warning and despite Allan's ragged protest towards Van. She leaped into Van's arms. "Oh, Lord Van! How dare you leave us without warning! I have been so worried about you!"  
  
Van did not say anything as Allan approached.   
  
Dryden's lips parted. "Princess Millerna," he breathed.  
  
Millerna looked at him with an air of curiousity. "Dryden."  
  
Allan ignored the shaggy merchant and marched straight up to Van. "Van, what were you thinking, leaving off like that?" he demanded. "And making Hitomi your accomplice; are you so much of a fool as being an ignorant child? This is no time to be strutting about like an idiot; this is war! The enemy is on the move to the mainland and here you are walking about as if life was like it was."  
  
Van did not say anything.   
  
"Stop yelling at Lord Van!" Meruru shouted.  
  
Allan's eyes darted from side to side. "Where's Hitomi?" he demanded.  
  
"They took her."  
  
"Who took her?"  
  
"The dark guymelufs," Van replied shortly. "They appeared while Escaflowne was on dragon mode. Hitomi was using her foretelling powers to see who they really were, their motives and---she fell off. One of those bastard things caught her and disappeared. I destroyed the two others and fell onto Dryden's ship," he finished.  
  
Dryden examined Escaflowne. "Sure is kind of worn out."  
  
Allan didn't pay attention. "You let Hitomi fall like that? You baka!"  
  
"I tried to catch her, but she was falling too fast!" Van yelled back angrily. "I tried, Allan, I so damned tried! I'm not like you who comes to the rescue, a knight in shining armour! Geez, Allan, you're so hard-headed these days. I wished I never saw your face...ever." He turned towards Dryden. "I think Escaflowne needs some touch-ups before I take her out again."  
"Sure, no problem," Dryden replied.  
  
"What will you do afterwards?" Millerna asked.   
  
"I'm going to find Hitomi." Van glared at the steaming Allan. "By myself."  
  
  
Where am I? Hitomi wondered as she lay down on the iron cold floor. She was still clutching the pendant as she glared up at the ceiling. It was dark. It was cold. It was everything but warm and friendly. She didn't remember much of how she winded up in the cell, nor how long time had passed.   
  
She remembered feathers.  
  
Oh, Van, where are you? she wondered.   
  
She sat up. There was no point wasting time; she believed that Van would get her out of this stone cold place somehow. Holding the pendant out, she began to swing it, thinking of what was going on around her...  
  
The clanks of swords. A battlefield filled with blood, fire and death. The dark guymelufs marching inland, holding up their banner of victory, of their legion. Escaflowne fighting in battle, both against the dark guymelufs and another guymeluf.   
  
Feathers.  
  
Rainclouds rolling in the landscape.  
  
"Van?" she whispered.  
  
She heard her cell gates open up and a gruff man stomping in. "Get up!" he croaked and dragged her to her feet with a grubby hand and dragged her out of her cell. The light from a torch blinded her vision for a brief moment, and by the time she could see, she noticed that she was being hauled down a stone corridor.   
  
She fought panic. "Where are you taking me?!"  
  
"To be of audience to His Majesty, Emperor Talonn, of the New Zaibach Sect."  
  
  
***I won't go/ I won't sleep/  
I can't breathe/Until you're resting here with me/  
I won't leave/I can't hide/  
I can't be/Until you resting here with me***  
~"Here with Me" Dido  
  
  
~End of Chapter  
Uh-oh, so the enemy is revealed now...will Van save her? what about the tension between van and allan? ^_~ R&R! 


	7. 

yes, here is the next part and yes, the server is still down on my end. anyways, we...i...left off hanging to the point where hitomi is to be led to the new emperor of the zaibach sect. the beginning of this part is actually quite sweet, and don't flame me allan fans for allan's deranged character, but trust me, there is a reason for all this. enjoy!  
  
~Face to Face with the Advesary  
~*Namida No Sora*~  
  
"How are you, Millerna?"   
  
Princess Millerna stood beside Dryden as they watched from a bridge above his men finish up Escaflowne inside Dryden's ship. She straightened despite the fact that she was caught off-guard by him. After all, he was her husband for a brief moment before he went away and try to brushen up his attitude.   
  
Be calm, Millerna, be calm. It's just a simple question. "I am okay, Dryden," she replied curtly. "The palace has dumped me a lot of responsibility here and there and I pretty much have my hands tied nowadays." She hesitated. "How about you? You still go around in your merry little ship."  
  
"My ship is not little," he said huffly, obviously joking. "Yes, as a merchant, you get to see a lot of things, hear a lot of strange stuff, but some days, it can be pretty damn boring. Such as this morning. You get up, you do whatever you gotta do, and you just sit there 'til you reach the next town. Of course, that was all before His Majesty decided to drop by and say hello, that is."  
  
Millerna nodded empathically.  
  
Silence.  
  
"So," they said in unison, and then blushed.  
  
"You first," he said ominously.  
  
"No, you," she insisted.  
  
"I insist---" His words were cut off when suddenly, Allan appeared a shot distance behind Dryden, scowling. Millerna shot upright and Dryden turned to face Allan. "Allan, there is no such thing as a scowling knight aboard this ship, you know. You're wrecking my credibility."  
  
"Am I, merchant?" he snapped back.  
  
"Allan," Millerna stated sternly, her voice rising in hostility.  
  
Now Dryden was confused. Did something happen between Millerna and Allan, enough to get Millerna's blood boiling? Oh, if that Allan guy hurt her in any way, he wasn't going to get off his ship alive..."May I help you, Allan, other than direct some smiley points?" he asked crisply.   
  
"I wanted to state my complaint about you fixing Escaflowne," he said.  
Millerna turned away and looked out towards the contruction.  
  
Dryden cocked an eyebrow. "Oh? And why so?"  
  
Allan was growing even more impatient as he crossed his arms brutally. "Don't you get it? The boy's running around and will sooner or later bump into some sort of trouble if he keeps up like this!"  
  
"As I recall, there was some boy his age running around the same way..."  
  
"Grrr...Dryden! You know what I mean!"  
  
"The boy is a king, Allan, you can't deny his request," Dryden stated calmly. "Well, I'm sure you denied many of his, but I am not as resistant as you are, knight. I plan to obey the king. After all, only a fool would be so blind enough not to follow the orders of a king---you may lose his grace as well as his respect."  
  
Allan scowled. "I am still older and wiser than Van."  
  
"Older, most certainly. Wiser? I can't say..." Dryden marvelled. "I don't think it's Van you're really worrying about...I'm sure you've been on his case more than once. I think you're concerned about something related to Van...oh, let's say...Hitomi?"  
  
Allan paused. "Hitomi is in danger."  
  
"And you want to save her?" Dryden asked, the laughed heartily, or at least to mock the knight. "Allan, Allan, Allan...don't you get it? You may save her, but her eyes will always be on His Majesty, the King. Why? Because they are connected. They are meant to be, by what the Fates proclaim. The destroyed the Fate Machine years ago because of what they share...you will always be her friend. Besides, I thought you were over her."  
  
Allan said nothing and stomped off.  
  
"That was not a wise thing to do, Dryden," Millerna said softly.   
  
Dryden leaned on the railing. "What am I supposed to do?" he asked out loud. "But I certainly got a thrill out of pissing the hell out of him today... that's what he gets for the snide comments he made years earlier. But what I want to know is what he did to you..."  
  
"Nothing," she said quickly.  
  
He sighed, realizing he won't get far with asking. He shrugged. "Look, Millerna, if you need to talk...I'm here, okay?" He patted her hands, which were clutching the railing, gently before turning around and walking away towards the wardroom.  
  
  
Hitomi shivered as she was led to a dark room.   
  
"Your Majesty," the soldier said gruffly. "I have brought you the prisoner."  
  
"Excellent, man," the man replied from where he stood in front of a long table. He was clothed in dark did not turn around to look at them. "You may leave now...your assistance in no longer needed."  
  
"Yes, sir." He dropped Hitomi to the floor and exitted.  
  
Hitomi groaned as she struggled to her feet. "Who are you?"  
  
"Funny, you should ask," the man replied, still facing his back towards her. "I...am the reason for all this."  
  
Great, a man who likes to play riddles, she thought. Life can't get any more interesting than this... "I can tell," she replied smartly, standing cautiously, clutching Van's necklace. "But who are you?"  
  
"I ask the questions here!" he boomed, his voice so loud she tumbled back and slid across the floor on her belly. She winced in pain as her nails clawed the ebony floors to stop herself from sliding any further. With all her might, she pulled herself to her feet, gasping for breath.  
  
The man picked up a card and tossed it back, towards her. She caught it mid-air and examined the car. The Tower...  
  
Flash.  
  
Shuken. "Hitomi-chan? Are you alright? Hitomi? Hitomi!"  
  
Flash.  
  
"Is love stronger than fate?"  
  
Flash.  
  
Feather.  
  
Raindrops from the dark clouds.  
  
Hitomi was now gasping for breath as she dropped the card from her delicate fingers to the floor. She saw the pendant glow for a brief moment before it stopped. She sulked down to the floor, cold sweat enveloping her forehead like a lake.   
  
"I see," the man said, retrieving the card through some form of telekenisis.  
Hitomi looked up slowly. "You---You---sick bastard."  
  
"I hardly think so," he replied curtly.   
  
"You---You knew."  
  
"So maybe I did," he responded.  
  
"My friends will...will find me...and when they do...you'll pay," she gasped.  
  
"We'll see about that."  
  
  
Van went pale from where he sat.   
  
"Lord Van?" Meruru asked gently. "Lord Van, are you alright?"  
  
Dryden and Allan watched in silence.  
  
Van could hear something distant from him, in his mind. He listened carefully; could it be Hitomi? He allowed his mind to slip and think of Hitomi...  
  
Flash.  
  
"Is love stronger than fate?"  
  
Feathers.  
  
Raindrops falling from the sky.  
  
The Tower card slipping from Hitomi's hands.  
  
Escaflowne fighting the dark guymelufs.  
  
"My friends will...will find me...and when they do...you'll pay," she gasped.  
  
"We'll see about that."  
  
Flash.  
  
Meruru was now clasped with Van's arm. "Lord Van!"  
  
"I have to go," Van said, wiping away the cold sweat and getting to his feet. He collected his shield cuffs and pulled his sword in his sheath around his waist. He made his way to the door.  
  
Allan blocked him. "Where do you think you're going?"  
  
Van looked up to Allan. "To save Hitomi."  
  
  
***I had a fool's confidence/  
that the world had no boundaries/  
but instincts and common sense/  
come in different quantities***  
~"Sally's Pigeons" Cyndi Lauper  
  
  
~End of Chapter  
There we go---got up to date with my story, for now. typin up the rest of the story. please R&R! 


	8. 

Here's the next installment! This is the part where doubt and strong stubborness comes in play...don't kill me! Just read! R&R!  
  
  
~Visions Come True~  
~*Namida No Sora*~  
  
"Let me go with you," Allan pleaded as Van boarded the repaired Escaflowne.  
  
Van looked down at Allan's desperate face. He never saw the knight so insistent before, but that didn't matter to him; he was more concerned of Hitomi at the moment than to worry whether Allan was desperate to come or what. After all, Allan did say some pretty nasty things to him. "Why?" he demanded a little too harshly.  
  
"I want to help you," he said, his face in visible recoil. "You can't just go around scouting for Hitomi. What if you run into trouble? Then what? You can't defeat them all---even you know that. With a knight like me by your side, I can help you---"  
  
"Do what? Drive me insane?" Van snapped.   
  
Allan blinked. "What the hell are you talking about?"  
  
"You know what I'm talking about, so don't play stupid," Van said coldly. "You think I'm just some figurehead in Fanelia, where you can just shout at and I won't notice? I'm human too, Allan! Only I'm not fifteen anymore...so why don't you just bug someone else...like Dryden...and leave me alone!" Van shut his faceguard and started to stomp towards the exit.   
  
"Van...Van! Get back here! Van!"  
  
Suddenly, Meruru appeared from behind Allan, her cat eyes wide open when she saw Van in Escaflowne's cockpit marching towards the open exit which Dryden's men had prepared. She gritted her teeth before yelling, "Lord Van! Lord Van! What are you doing?! Does she mean that much that you'd walk right into a suicide?!"  
  
Allan pressed a grin. Smart girl.  
  
Van stopped and turned around to face his best friend with a peculiar gaze. Meruru sighed; she made him stop to think logically. But the triumph was short-lived. "Yes," he said before continuing to march towards the exit of the docking area.  
  
"Lord Van!" Meruru shouted.  
  
"King Van! Don't do anything stupid!" Allan shouted with her before whirling around to see Millerna and Dryden watching them scream and wail at Escaflowne's rear. "Dryden! Do something!" he hissed.  
  
Dryden shrugged. "Too late...it's his decision."  
  
"It's you ship!" Allan reasoned desperately.  
  
"That dosen't mean I put Van under confinement on my ship," he said coolly.  
Allan growled before stomping off towards his guymeluf.  
  
"Where are you going, Allan Schezar?!" Meruru shrieked.  
  
"To make sure Van doesn't do anything stupid." He hauled himself onto his gray guymeluf and gunned up the engines. A moment later, he followed Escaflowne out the cargo doors and into the open sky.  
  
Dryden shook his head. "That baka...I think he's just as obsessed in Van as Van is about Hitomi," he remarked snidely. "It's a never ending cycle."  
Millerna folded her arms. "I just hope they don't do anything stupid," she sighed heavily.   
  
Dryden looked down at Millerna. "Don't worry, Millerna," he cooed softly, trying to soothe her concern of the knight of Asturia and the king of Fanelia. "Just pray that they don't kill each other before they reach Hitomi and they'll be just fine."  
  
She looked up at Dryden. "Okay, Dryden. I'll try."  
  
They locked gazes.  
  
Meruru sighed, turning her attention away from the princess and the merchant. Love, she thought. Lord Van and Hitomi are like, meant to be. They can't live without each other---they are virtually inseperable. I can tell Allan isn't pleased about the thought---I think he still is after Hitomi. And now Millerna and Dryden are rekindling what they had---it's intoxicating me.   
She turned back to see the two lock lips.  
  
Sweatdrop. Now she was getting intoxicated. She stomped off and left, leaving the couple necking each other and hoping Lord Van would be okay.  
  
  
"You're crazy,Allan, for coming!" Van shouted.  
  
"You're a nut case yourself, Van!" Allan yelled back.  
  
Oh, that is the final straw! he thought. This guy is worse than before. He triggered the button and Van turned to guymeluf-form and faced Allan. "That is it, Allan Schezar, this is the final straw!" he shouted angrily. "We settle this once and for all!"   
  
Allan drew out his sword. "That's fine by me!"  
  
Swords clanked.   
  
Van and Allan engaged in a heated attack of jabs and swordsmanship. Allan jabbed the sword forward, but Van whirled around and blocked it with his sword. He then danced back before lunging froward with the sword, but Allan pushed it aside.  
  
He's gotten better, Allan thought.  
  
I forgotten how good he was, Van thought. "What's your problem, Schezar?! Why the hell have you been making my life a living hell since the enemy has been appearing?!" he demanded.  
  
Clank.  
  
Block. "Because you were acting like a fool!" Allan shouted.   
  
"A fool? I was protecting my country!" Van shouted. "I am still a senshi, despite all the nice fixations as king. I'm still a fighter, and I will always be! That dosen't justify your actions all the way---you're hiding something, something that's related to me in a way!" He caught Allan off guard, his sword damaging Allan's metal.  
  
Allan danced back. "You want to know, Fanel? I'll tell you!" he spat.   
  
"Hitomi!"  
  
Van stopped. "What about Hitomi?"   
  
"Oh, don't lie, Van," he mocked bitterly. "Running off like that...the way she was so worried about your well-being that she pushed everyone aside for you. Dammit, Van, it ached me to see her again! It ached me to see how absolutely naive you made her about the world...about love..."  
  
Van finally got the message. "You still love her," he realized.  
  
"Of course, you baka," Allan said snidely.   
  
Van was shocked. Allan, still in love with Hitomi? His world was crashing down on him. What if, what if Hitomi would choose Allan over him? Of course, everyone chose Allan over Van. Van was scrawny, dark-haired and still naive in many ways. Allan was built, blonde and galant. Of course she would choose the knight over him, no matter what title he could place on himself; he would always be worthless beside Allan Schezar.  
  
He didn't see Allan do a major blow to his faceplate. Van came crashing to the ground, to reality, to darkness. He plundged into such a chaotic darkness of his own selt doubt that he did not hear Allan shout his name before yelping as dark guymelufs appeared, surrounding them....  
  
  
Escaflowne crashing to the ground.  
  
Hitomi's eyes widened. Van? She could sense Van's cloud of self-doubt along with the striking blows to Escaflowne. A chilling tingle went up her spine and goosebumps formed on her arms. What was going on with him? Why did he suddenly fall as such?   
  
A vision of Allan and Van's guymelufs surrounded by the dark ones.  
Of course, Allan and Van fighting, what's new? she wondered. But wait a minute, Van's on the ground...what did Allan say or do to Van to cripple him as such?  
  
Allan...Van...  
  
Hitomi looked up at her captor. "You're sick," she spat. "How could you?!"  
  
Her captor finally pondered before facing her for the first time. She was astound; he had a thin face with dark hair and a dark beard, trimmed. He had a scar on his right cheek and his eyes were such a startling green. He was in many ways like his predecessor yet had his own unique qualities; curiousity, striking appearances and a sense of evil. Emperor Talonn was certainly an imposing man. Incredibly imposing.  
  
"How could I?" he mocked. "How could I not? The dragon is in the way of our destiny...of my destiny...I must get rid of whatever is in my way," he stated sternly, turning around again to his work, his garments taking a swing with his pivot.   
  
I have to save Van, she thought. And Allan. And everyone in Gaia...from this madman. "But my destiny is interlinked with Van's," she pleaded. "So I am in the way as he is. You kill him...you'll still deal with me. Either way, we'll take you down together."  
  
He pondered for a moment. "Interesting," he mused. "The Lovers card...so I was correct. You and the Dragon are interlinked...nonetheless...I'll tell them to kill his companion...no wait, better yet, both of them...it's you that is the key."  
  
Hitomi was thunderstuck. "How---why---?"  
  
"Because you are of the Mystic Moon, are you not?"  
  
Hitomi was silent.  
  
"I'll take that as a yes," he said, continuing. "Since you are of the Mystic Moon, what better yet than to hold on to you. You have the capabilities to transport people from Gaia to the Mystic Moon and back. You are special...it is your gift that allows you to live in this sect..."  
  
"I will never use my powers for your own personal self-serving plans."  
  
Emperor Talonn smiled crudely, facing that smile at him. "But you must," he stated. "And you will. You will take me to the Mystic Moon after I have conquered Gaia as Emperor and Lord Dornkirk wished or I will burn both Gaia and the Mystic Moon with the powers that be."  
  
  
***Travelling down this road/  
Watching the signs as I go/  
I think I'll follow the sun/  
Isn't everyone just/  
Travelling down their own road/  
Watching the signs as they go/  
I think I'll follow my heart/  
It's a good place to start***  
~"Sky fits Heaven", Madonna  
  
  
~End of Chapter~ 


	9. 

Ah, yes, even more doubt. the title says it all. yes, you will see a character come back for a brief moment from the past, but otherwise, things are definitely escalating!  
  
~Doubts of the Mind~  
~*Namida No Sora*~  
  
Allan was fending off the dark guymelufs. "Van, wake up! Van!"  
  
Van was still unconcsious in his own mind, fighting his own demons. This is so uncomfortable, he thought. To know that this love has become a triangle all over again. How can I compete? I love her so much...only to know that my friend and rival also wants her just as much? Why does everything have to happen to me?  
  
Clanks of sword.  
  
"Van," Allan growled. "Van, you baka, help! Wake up, dammit!"  
  
My life sucks, Van thought. I think that's the term Hitomi would use, My life sucks. All my life, I was always searching for that perfect moment when I would be with that perfect, true love. My heart says she is the one, but my mind just can't help thinking that Allan will always be attacking that dream. I remember when I was just a child, after Mother went away...looking up from the Mystic Moon and whispering for an angel to come to me one day and never make me sad, or feel hurt, or be lonely. What a lie this life has been...why does everything so right has to be so wrong?  
  
"Van!" Allan shouted. "Van, wake up! Please, Van, I can't save us all!"  
Maybe I should give up right now, Van thought glumly. Maybe I should give in to what these bastards want, give up the crown, give up on Fanelia, give up on Escaflowne, Gaia---give up on life. I have the looks of the angel but I don't have the persona---Hitomi does. She deserves better. She deserves better than someone like me...a scrawny, naive, lost boy.   
  
"Van!" Allan spat as he tumbled to the ground.  
  
Clanks of sword. Scrapings of rock.  
  
Van felt his body getting lighter. I think this is it, he thought. I think I'm really over. Gosh, has Allan overdone himself. At least Hitomi doesn't have to worry herself to death about me...I'm sure Allan can save her much better than me. He suits the role better. He looked into the unending darkness. I love you, Hitomi...you were that angel I was praying for all those years ago....  
  
  
Van? Hitomi wondered. She felt something begin to fade inside her, something that lay in her heart. She forgot about Emperor Talonn for a moment and closed her eyes, focusing on Van. Van...what's going on? she asked into the unending darkness. Van, don't die!  
  
I love you, Hitomi...you were that angel I was praying for all those years ago...  
  
Van? she said into the darkness. He wished for her a long time ago?   
  
Flash.  
  
A chibi Van looking outside his bedside window into the starry sky, his eyes focusing on Earth and her orbitting Moon. "I wish a tenshi would come someday," he said in his cute chibi voice. Even Van was adorably cute at one point, she realized. "A tenshi that would never make me sad, or alone, or hurt. A tenshi that will always be smiling down on me."  
  
Flash.   
  
Hitomi, three years ago, when she first laid out the cards and asked if she would find true love. Bingo; she did, at the price that she would be seperated from the others and a Dragon---Van, Gaea and true love. Then her mother called her to take her shower.  
  
Flash.  
  
"Is love stronger than Fate?"  
  
Feathers.   
  
Flash.  
  
Rain coming down from the sky.   
  
Shuken counting the stars.   
  
Her mother all worried about her.  
  
Yukari thinking about her, holding a portrait of her.  
  
Amano driving across night time Tokyo.  
  
Van, she called out again. Van, I need you, don't leave me here. Van, I don't care about whatever Allan said and did...don't listen to him! Listen to me, Van! I love you, Van, and I don't want to lose you. Not now...not ever...so don't die on me. I love you, Van, remember that!  
  
Suddenly, she was enveloped in a shower of light, catching Emperor Talonn's attention. He spun around and saw Hitomi's body float upward towards the summit. "I knew it! Ha ha! She was an energist, after all!" he shouted for joy. "Now, to join her---and to sought out my destiny! Hahahahaha..."  
  
He gathered his tarot cards, slid them into a pocket in his jacket, and ran towards the beam of light before it disappeared behind her. First, he speculated it closely before stepping into the light---  
  
---and vanishing.  
  
By the time the guards came, they were too late.   
  
  
Van, I need you, don't leave me here. Van, I don't care about whatever Allan said and did...don't listen to him! Listen to me, Van! I love you, Van, and I don't want to lose you. Not now...not ever...so don't die on me. I love you, Van, remember that!  
  
Hitomi? Van called out. Echoes. She loves me! She really does!  
  
An image formed; green hair, calm eyes dressed in a white tunic and dark brown pants. Van was now standing in a field, a field outside of Fanelia, near his family's grave. They were looking at the ancient tree of Fanelia, the roots of their history. He knew who this stranger was. "Brother?"  
  
"Yes, Van," he replied coolly.   
  
"Why---what---" he stammered.   
  
"I am here," he stated calmly, "because I sensed my brother is in trouble. Listen to me, Little Brother, things happen for a reason. But not this. Not this bond between you and Hitomi."  
  
Van was struck silent.  
  
Folken continued to talk. "You can doubt the entire world, Van, but not her. Never doubt her. Because this love of yours, that love you feel in your heart...it's right."  
  
"Brother...?" Van began to ask.   
  
"You'll get it when you see it. Good-bye, Van..."  
  
"Brother!"  
  
His eyes snapped open. "Brother!"   
  
All he saw was his smashed faceplate.   
  
He darted about; his faceplate was crushed to his right. His mechanism seemed to be fine, except maybe it smelled like smoke. He snapped his hand upright and raised himself to stand full-form. "Easy goes, Escaflowne," he hushed as he looked around. He found Allan's guymeluf on the stone, wrecked.   
  
"Allan? Allan!"  
  
The faceplate opened, to reveal Allan's worn-out face. "You finally woke up."  
So much for the greeting. Van nodded. He whirled around to see the dark guymelufs gathered for a plan of attack. He gritted his teeth and grabbed the hilt of his blade. He unsheathed it and lunged forward, yelling.   
  
Slash.  
  
Creak.   
  
Clash! He engaged himself in a heated battle against the enemy, the enemy with no face whom just started a fight with Gaia. Will they pay for their crimes against the peace Hitomi and he created! He sliced, diced and fought with his life.   
  
"Van!"  
  
Van's face whirled. "Hitomi?!" He elbowed another guymeluf down and opened his faceplate. His eyes scanned the perimeter. Sure enough, standing on the boulder, was Hitomi's beautiful face, gleaming up at him in her full uniform, not a scab on her. "Hitomi!"  
  
"Van!" she cried, grinning.  
  
Suddenly, a shadow lurked from behind her, grabbing her. Van saw a man with dark garments and dark hair and matching goatee pull out a knife and place it close to Hitomi's heart. "Hold it right there, Dragon," he threatened. "Or you will see just how sincere her love is for you."  
  
  
***Whatever reason to leave that I've had/  
My place was always beside you/  
And I wish I didn't need you so bad/  
Your face just won't go away***  
~"Don't Wanna Lose You Know", Backstreet Boys  
  
  
~End of Chapter 


	10. 

Ah, everything's coming together...enjoy!  
  
~Obstacles of Destiny~  
~*Namida No Sora*~  
  
Hitomi was giving out short, ragged breaths as she felt the cold blade near her heart. The menacing emperor was holding her tight, as if his life depended on her, so there was no room for escape. Even if she could, she would be killed by the blade.  
  
I have to trust Van, she thought.  
  
Van felt like he had forgotten how to breath as he watched Emperor Talonn steady his knife at Hitomi's chest. "Oh, God, Hitomi," he breathed. What was he going to do now?   
  
"Van!" Allan croaked. "The guymeluf reinforcements..."  
  
Van turned away from the emperor for a brief moment to look at the horizon. He saw dark guymelufs shimmering into being, marching towards the battlefield which was already littered with fallen allies, fire and blood. They marched with their victory flag raised up high to the blood-torn sky, a terrifying sight. This is it, he thought, raising his sword.  
  
"Van, what do you think you're doing?!" Allan croaked from his cockpit.   
"You're going into suicide mode if you even think of fighting all those guymelufs all at once!" He struggled his guymeluf to its feet. "Let me deal with the guymelufs...go save Hitomi." Allan raised his own sword.  
  
"Allan!" Van shouted. "No!"  
  
He turned to face the young king. "Don't worry. It's alright," he said calmly before facing his enemy.   
  
Van turned hysterically towards Emperor Talonn and Hitomi. "You're never going to get away with this, Talonn!" he shouted. "You've disrupted the peace of Gaia...you're about to commit cold-blood murder...and destroy this world! I won't allow it! I will get you and you will pay the damned price, no matter how high it is!"  
  
The emperor laughed hysterically. "Dragons," he spat. "They never learn."  
From behind him, a dark guymeluf rose in flying mode. He looked back and leaped onto the guymeluf, still holding Hitomi hostage against the blade of his dagger. He laughed again. "Let's see whether you can catch me, Dragon! Then we'll know the ture strength in Zaibach technology, Dorkirk's inheritance to all of Gaia!" With that, the guymeluf started to speed away.  
  
"What are you waiting for, Van?" Allan hollered. "Go after him!"  
  
"What about you, Allan?" Van asked.   
  
"Forget after me! Save Hitomi!"  
  
Van growled in fustration before snapping Escaflowne into dragon mode and chasing after Emperor Talonn.  
  
Allan looked ahead, awaiting his heroic death when he saw glimmers in the sky. Stars, he assumed. But then the glimmers got bigger and bigger, when he could see ships instead of stars. Asturia's forces! he thought gleefully. They came to help him!   
  
The dark guymelufs inched closer.  
  
Hurry up, Allan thought. Send the ground troops now...Moments later, Asturia's guymelufs touched down side by side with Allan against the incoming forces. In a distance, he could see Dryden's merchant ship and the Crusade holding a mid-air position with Asturia's main air forces.   
  
The battle officially began.  
  
  
"Get back here, Talonn, and fight like a man!" Van shouted.  
  
"Didn't you mama ever tell you to call me Emperor?" he shouted back.  
  
The two guymelufs zoomed through the skies, Van in pursuit aboard Escaflowne. The wind was against him, but he didn't care. Hitomi was at the hands of the murderous villian and he needed to save her. He had to. Maybe if I save her, he thought, I might also be able to save myself from all this doubt.  
  
"Van!" Hitomi cried.   
  
"Hitomi! I'm coming!" he shouted.   
  
Emperor Talonn bent down and held the knife closer to her. "Aww, isn't that all sappy and sweet," he mocked outrageously. "The damsel in distress, the Priestess, is waiting for her knight in shining armour, in this case the Dragon, to save her from the bad guy. Well, lemme tell you, this is all such a nice story...only, it ain't gonna have a happy ending!"   
  
Van pushed Escaflowne closer to the guymeluf's side. "C'mon, Escaflowne," he hurried, "keep together. This shouldn't take long." With that, he secured his sheath and sword and leaped onto the other guymeluf and pried Talonn away from Hitomi.   
  
"Van!" she cried, hugging him.  
  
"Are you alright, Hitomi?" he asked gently.   
  
"Yes."  
  
"I'm never letting you go again---"  
  
"You bastard!" Talonn shouted, leaping forward with the dagger.   
  
Instinctively, Van drew out his sword and blocked the attack. Their blades clashed as Van slid out towards a back defensive position infront of Hitomi. The emperor lunged forward again, trying to scar Van, but he blocked and kicked Talonn back.   
  
"You won't win, Talonn," Van said coolly.  
  
He struggled to his feet. "We'll see about---that!" He lunged forward again, catching Van off-guard. Van crashed to the hull of the dark guymeluf, the sun stinging his eyes as Talonn hovered above him, the knife to his throat.  
  
"I see that I come out as victor," he said slyly. "Since my men can't finish the job---I guess I'll have to." He smiled. "I have waited too long for this, Dragon. I finally get to stop my obstacle from getting the the way of my destiny..."  
  
Hitomi couldn't stand there and watch him kill Van. "No!"  
  
Suddenly, she began to shine a brilliant light from her pendant and so did Van for a strange sense as he was enwrapped in the light. It shone so bright that Emperor Talonn jumped back, the light stinging and burning his hand. The dagger dropped to the hull, sizzling hot. Van was in a trance as the light fully recovered whatever was jarred out of him during the fight. He watched; it was all coming from the Priestess, Hitomi.  
  
He struggled to his feet and staggered towards Hitomi. She blinked back to reality, but it was too late to fight; he had a hold of her and was close to the edge of the guymeluf. She whimpered and squirmed, trying to loosen the emperor's grip, but his grip was surprisingly strong, despite the burns.   
  
"I'm afraid you're the source of all this...strength," he said deeply. "If I destroy the source, then the dragon will fall merciless at my feet. Then my destiny would be clear." He smiled cheesily. "You were right after all; you were the obstacle to defeat, and the dragon an extra. Good-bye, little lady, have a nice trip to Hades."   
  
"No, don't---"  
  
He let go.  
  
Hitomi fell helplessly, unable to pry onto anything. "Van!!!!!!!!!"  
  
Van snapped out of the healing to hear Hitomi's screams as the plummetted to Gaia. He snapped his head forward to also see the guymelufs running towards Mount Edga, one of the highest mountains in all of Gaia. He also saw the emperor laughing, unaware of the mountain dead ahead.   
  
Van instinctively leaped onto Escaflowne and dived down after Hitomi.  
  
"Hahahahahaha...now the Dragon, too, shall die," Talonn said, "for no human can survive a fall like so...for I am closer to Heaven now than ever! There is no turning back! Hahahahahahaha!" He turned to see Mount Edga dead ahead, kilometers away. "What the---oh, hell---aaaaggghhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!"  
  
The guymeluf crashed into the mountainside, and the last thing Emperor Talonn thought was; Is love stronger than my destiny?  
  
  
***So though we cannot know/  
If everything glitters and/  
Will turn into the gold/  
I'm through with waitin'/  
And hesitatin/  
Why won't you take it?/  
This heart of mine***  
~"Heart of Mine", Peter Salett  
  
  
~End of Chapter 


	11. 

^^ I ain't breathing a word.   
  
~Second Chances~  
~*Namida No Sora*~  
  
"Hitomi! I'm coming!"  
Escaflowne raced faster and faster down towards Gaia. Van could barely keep track of where Hitomi was falling to for the clouds and the winds where making him squint more than he should. Frankly, his eyes still stung from the sunlight coming directly into his eyes.   
  
"Hitomi! Geez---Escaflowne! Hurry!"  
  
The minutes were going too slowly and Hitomi was falling faster and faster towards the earth. "Argh!" he cried, jumping down ahead of Escaflowne, his wings spreading forward and flying down after Hitomi.   
  
I'm coming Hitomi....  
  
Flash.  
  
A chibi Van looking outside his bedside window into the starry sky, his eyes focusing on Mystic Moon. "I wish a tenshi would come someday," he said softly at the amazing spectacle. "A tenshi that would never make me sad, or alone, or hurt. A tenshi that will always be smiling down on me."  
  
Flash.  
  
"Is love stronger than fate?"  
  
Yes...  
  
Flash.  
  
A chibi Hitomi looking up at her grandmother as she hands her the pendant for the very first time. "This man gave it to me a very long time ago," she told the young Hitomi. She smiled down at her granddaughter gently. "It grants you any wish you desire. If you wish hard enough, you might get it."   
  
Flash.  
  
Van was closing in on her. "Grab my hand, Hitomi!"  
  
She raised a frail hand...  
  
...he grabbed her hand and pulled her up. She reached out and wrapped her arms around his neck to draw herself up completely. It ended up like an embrace as Van set themselves onto the plundging Escaflowne. He folded his wings as he pulled Escaflowne up to the sky once again, Hitomi holding tightly behind him.   
  
The wind cooled their sweat as they flew in the sky.   
  
"Hitomi," he began. "I---"  
  
"It's okay, Van" she said gently. "Let's go back to Allan and the others."  
He nodded, pulling the reigns and swerving back to the battlefield. But he couldn't help feeling like a child all over again, and the doubt about himself, Hitomi and Allan was beginning to submerge again.   
  
  
"Hitomi!" Allan cried as he wrapped his arms around her.  
  
"Allan!" she cried as she returned the hug. "Are you alright?"  
  
"I am now."  
  
Soon, they were joined by Millerna, Dryden and Meruru. Meruru was the first to spot the glum Van and jumped into his arms, talking about how she missed him and how stupid he was for plundging himself into battle like that. Millerna and Dryden went to Allan and Hitomi instead of him.   
  
"Hitomi, it's good to see you again," Dryden said kindly.   
  
"You too, Dryden," Hitomi replied, grinning.   
  
"Hitomi, are you alright?" Millerna asked in a concerned tone.   
  
Hitomi nodded. "Yes, I'm fine now."  
  
Allan smiled down on her and she began to feel like she was three years before, when she first met Allan. He was nice, dashing, gallant. Different yet like Amano. She shook the thought; Amano was now with Yukari and Allan... well, she wasn't sure what to say about Allan...  
  
"I have to talk to you in private, Hitomi," Allan whispered.   
  
Hitomi nodded and bowed to the others. "Gomen."  
  
Van watched as Allan and Hitomi walked a short distance to talk. He felt jealous, enraged, sad and lonely all at the same time. Don't worry, he thought. Brother said to trust Hitomi because our love is right...but is it? Emperor Talonn had his own obstacles to defeat...but what about me? I have my own obstacles between me and Hitomi. Soon, she'll return to the Mystic Moon and I'll be left with Allan at my neck again...  
  
Van watched as Millerna and Dryden talked softly amoungest themselves. He noticed something strange; they were holding hands and touching each other more. He cocked his eyebrow; what was this all about? "Did I miss anything while I was gone?" he asked stonely.   
  
Meruru replied for them, revealing their embaressment. "Yes, Lord Van!" she cried. "They're getting married all over again!"  
  
Van raised a brow again. "Oh?"  
  
Millerna smiled small. "I supposed we wanted to give it a try again."  
  
Dryden nodded. "I think I've become the man that I wanted to be."  
  
Van nodded. "Congratulations."   
  
"Do you want me to fix Escaflowne again?" Dryden asked, trying to conceal the little bit of news again.  
  
Van shrugged. "It dosen't matter."  
  
  
Allan brought her towards a boulder, a coule hundred meters away from the others. Millerna and Dryden were now talking to Van and Meruru, but Van looked very vague from where she was standing. He looked very unhappy, confused and...she couldn't pinpoint what he was thinking.   
  
Onto business. "Why do you want to talk to me, Allan?" she asked.   
  
"I wanted to say that I still care, Hitomi," Allan said. "That's what I've been trying to tell you back in Asturia. I still love you, Hitomi."  
  
"Allan," Hitomi began. "I---"  
  
"Let me finish, Hitomi," he said softly. "Seeing you like this...all grown up...it reminds me of all the times we had together. You've grown up to be a remarkable young woman, Hitomi, and I still love you, no matter how requitted it is..."  
  
"I-I'm flattered, Allan," she stammered in blank surprise. "I really am. But...I'm already in love. I love Van...I never realized it until his brother told me in a vision. I've connected to him since we first met on my world... we had some kind of link that even now I can't explain. You remind me so much of my friend, Amano, on Earth...I'm sure you and he would have been good friends, but...I'm sorry Allan...but, I can't love you back if my heart's not in it as well."  
  
Allan nodded slowly, closing his eyes. "I understand, Hitomi," he said slowly. "I knew you were all grown up now. I mean, I know you would've left all those childish things behind for something greater, something more real. I have to say that Van must be the luckiest guy in the universe...to have someone like you."  
  
"T-Thank you, Allan."  
  
He shrugged. "It's hard," he continued slowly, "knowing that no one is around. Sure, I got my sister, but I need something more than that. I loved Millerna, but she reminded me of her sister. I loved you, but you reminded me of my sister. It's a never-ending cycle of unrequitted love." He sulked.  
  
"Allan..."  
  
He shook his head. "Don't, Hitomi," he said. "Don't say it. Don't give me sympathy or your compassion or anything. I brought this upon my own self...if all my fault, really. It's not your fault I feel this way." He looked away from her and breathed in, calming himself down. "I'm just glad we talked. Really."  
  
Hitomi hugged Allan. "Friends?"  
  
He nodded and hugged her back. "Friends."  
  
  
Van felt crushed when he saw Hitomi and Allan walking back, arm around each other's shoulders. He felt a pang so sharp, he thought he was going to die right there and then. He couldn't believe what he was seeing; three years ago, he endured it, had ignored it, but now? What can he do now?  
  
Flash.  
  
"Is love stronger than fate?"  
  
Flash.   
  
"Van!" Hitomi smiled up at him.  
  
He felt the hurt beginning to swell. He had to get away from here. He had to think things through; what better yet than return to Fanelia? Suddenly, he wished that Hitomi didn't came back in the first place. Seeing her...like this...it was killing him.   
  
"Van?" Hitomi asked, suddenly perplexed.   
  
Not as confused as I am, he countered as he said, "I'm gonna go take a walk."  
  
"Van? Van, wait, lemme come---" she said.  
  
"No." He walked across some boulders and towards the mountain range.  
  
Hitomi felt the wind blow. "Van?"  
  
  
***But if I'm all alone in the world/  
And love disappears instead of tears/  
I won't hang my head, I'll fly away/  
Tomorrow I'll be closer to that dream that I held***  
~"Ashita wa motto" ("Tomorrow I'll be")  
  
  
~End of Chapter 


	12. 

Ahhh...is this over? Find out!  
  
~Broken Link~  
~*Namida No Sora*~  
  
The trip to Fanelia was long and uneventful. Dryden was courteous enough to hitch them a ride to Fanelia, where they would drop Van, Meruru and Hitomi off with Escaflowne. He and Millerna had been talking secretly in public, which Hitomi thought to be romantic. A love sewed on again after it had been savaged. Second chances.   
  
She sighed as she looked out at the sky. She saw Van in the maintenace area, watching Dryden's men patch up Escaflowne once again. He had barely breathed a word at his direction for the entire duration of the trip, ever since Allan and she had a word about their impending friendship. She had never seen Van so devastated nor so unhappy in such a long time. She tried desperately to talk to him, but he would always find a way to avoid her or something; when she tried talking to him mentally, he would block her off.   
  
He's angry at me, she concluded. But why?   
  
"Hitomi?"  
  
She turned around to see Allan standing by the door of the bridge balcony above the maintenance area. He was now clean-cut and in a pair of trousers and a white shirt. He had trimmed his beard and cropped his hair shorter... a lot shorter.   
  
"Your hair, Allan---" she began.  
  
He smiled softly. "I decided to go for a new look," he explained shyly before drawing himself up manly-like and changing the tone of voice. "What are you doing up here, Hitomi? Millerna has been going hysterical looking for you. She's asking for advice about what gown to wear."  
  
She turned away from Allan and looked back down again.   
  
"You're thinking about him, huh?"  
  
She nodded bleakly.   
  
"It's okay, Hitomi," he said calmly. "He's barely breathed a word to me, either. Every time I try to speak, he finds a way to get loose. He's acting like a mouse, and no matter how much you try to capture or outsmart him, he outsmarts the smart ones." He shook his head. "I don't understand---I tried to apoligize for earlier, but that didn't work either. It's like he's closed himself from the world---"  
  
Van looked up at them. Hitomi's eyes locked with Van's dark eyes and for a moment, she felt a very intense connection with him. The moments stretched out towards eternity before he turned away harshly and stalked off the area, breaking the connection.  
  
"I have to talk to him," she said softly. "Somehow."  
  
  
"Thank you, Hitomi, for helping me with everything," Millerna said, hugging her dear friend. "It's a shame you can't come to the marriage ceremony---again. I hope you have a safe trip home. Remember us, okay?"  
  
"Of course, Millerna."  
  
She stepped aside and Dryden patted her on the head, for he was still a lot taller than her. He smiled down at her and said, "It's good to see you again, Hitomi," he said gruffly. "Yeah, as Millerna said, it is a shame that you won't be able to come to our wedding, but you have other things to worry. Many blessings, Hitomi."  
  
"Thank you, Dryden. And congratulations."  
  
He walked over to Millerna, leaving Hitomi was Allan. Allan embraced Hitomi, saying, "I will miss you, Hitomi," he said softly. "Why---I'm already missing you. I know that we can never be, but as friends, I must say that I wish you all the best. Talk to Van before you go; I think he really needs someone right now. Goodbye, Hitomi."  
  
"Goodbye, Allan."  
  
Van, Meruru and Hitomi watched as Dryden's ship went up and set course back to Asturia, Millerna, Dryden and Allan waving goodbye to Hitomi and saying thank you to Van for helping them stop the new Zaibach sect.   
  
"Um---I have to go," Meruru said, rushing off.  
  
"Wait, Meruru!" Van shouted after her.  
  
"Meruru!" Hitomi yelled angrily at the same time.  
  
But the cat girl was gone, and Hitomi was left standing with Van. I might as well give it a go, Hitomi thought as she turned to Van and said, "Van, please, listen to me, I---"  
  
"I don't want to hear it," he grunted coldly, turning away.  
  
"Van, listen to me," she pleaded, tears involuntarily spilling from her eyes and down her cheeks. "If you think there's something going on between me and Allan, you're wrong. I know that this may look like a get-on kinda thing, but it isn't. I don't love him despite the idea that he loves me is still some sort of revelation. I love you, Van, you, not Allan."  
  
He shook his head. "You don't understand."  
  
"Do I?" she countered back angrily.  
  
He took one glance at her, one meaningful glance. Hitomi suddenly felt a rush of memories, overwhelming thoughts and sensations, as though her brain waves were linked with his. She felt fear, cold, lonliness. It was all over before she could grasp the meaning for he turning away.   
  
"Van?" she asked, perplexed.   
  
"You're going to go away again," he said sadly, the child within him stronger than ever. "I'll be all alone here again with nothing but memories and regrets and the whole bloody bunch. I don't want to...I don't want to live life like that." He sighed. "I can't ask you to stay...that would be selfish. It's your choice."  
  
She felt sadly touched. "You're not telling me everything, are you?"  
  
He sighed. "I guess you can tell," he said, remotely tired and on the brink of insanity. "Belgaus told me a long time ago, when you first came, about the Mystic Moon. He told me that somehow, we were destined to meet on your world, and that there was something strong about you. He told me that even if we were binded together as we are now, we can never truly be together because..." He trailed off.  
  
"Van!" she pleaded, grabbing onto his arm. "Tell me!"  
  
He looked down at her and touched her face. He gulped. "You're my equal and my opposite, Hitomi," he told her gently. "But it's important that you maintain the balance of your world with mine. Catastrophe...unspeakable catastrophe would occur if you stay here...let's say...forever." He sighed, much more heavier as the information got worse. "We're like a string connecting both worlds together...you're one end and I'm the other end. If I go to your world for a long period of time, Gaea will be lost. If you stay here for the same length, the Mystic Moon will be lost." He laughed harshly. "There's always a catch in things---now you know how important it is to stay in your world. Not for my sake, or your sake, or your family's sake, but for everyone's sake, both in this world and yours."  
  
She looked away. Unspeakable catastrophe...  
  
"I'm sorry," Van offered weakly. "I shouldn't have told you..."  
  
She turned back to him. "No," she said softly. "It's okay...I'm glad you told me." She shrugged helplessly. "I guess there is no such thing as a happy ending in this case, huh? I stay, the world crumbles beneath our feet. I go, and we would never be together. It's a no-win situation." She choked back a sob in her throat.   
  
Silence.  
  
"M-Maybe, there's a way."  
  
Hitomi looked up. "Huh?"  
  
"U-Use your gift. Find someone on Earth that might have a gift, like you," Van said, each word becoming more and more confident. "The first time you came here, the Mystic Moon didn't fall onto Gaea...yes, I know that you didn't stay very long there...here...whatever...but I think there might be someone on the Mystic Moon who is also a reciever." He then gave a weak smile and a shrug. "It might work."  
  
She bobbed her head and closed her eyes, swinging the pendant. Find me the one on the Mystic Moon that has the ability, she thought in her mind. Project me the image of the one that can help me maintain the balance...the end of the string...show me the line that connects the world...show me the one who can anchor the worlds...please...  
  
Earth. Tokyo. The track where Hitomi had ran just days before...A girl with shoulder-length brown hair looking out, holding the stack of tarot cards as the wind blew on her face and played with her hair...  
  
"Shuken?!"  
  
Van blinked. "Who?"  
  
"Shuken," she said breathlessly. "My classmate back home. She's the one that could maintain the balance! She must've been the one who had maintained the balance years ago, when I first came here!" She smiled happily at Van. "See Van?! As long as she remains on Earth, we can always be together! You'll never be lonely again..."  
  
"Is that what you want, Hitomi?"  
  
"It's what you want, right?"  
  
"Yeah, but you'll have to leave everyone behind..." he stated softly.   
She never thought of that, leaving her mother and her friends behind... did she want that? But I love Van, she reasoned. I don't want to lose him again...never again...She closed her eyes and swung the pendant once again, trying to make contact with Shuken.  
  
Memories and sensations started to rush in as she began to take a journey through time and space. She felt time spin counter-clockwise as she saw a young girl of fifteen in a temple, dressed in traditional clothing. Hitomi went wide-eyed; it was Shuken. She watched as Shuken dropped to the floor suddenly, yelping. Hitomi could see a strand of blue light attach her to the sky...  
  
...at the same time, Hitomi left with Van towards Gaea. Hitomi felt herself slip; the feelings were too strong. She shook her head and concentrated much more deeply.   
  
Think of the tracks...  
  
  
Tokyo, Japan, Earth  
Shuken stood in front of the silent track field, looking towards the setting sun into the cloudy skies. The wind blew huskily as she pulled her track jacket closer to her, careful not to drop the stack of tarot cards in her hand, just like what had happened only days before.  
  
She kept replaying the last moments when Hitomi was there...the channel from the sky shooting down...the whole world turning blue from the amazing energy that was being released...a thousand speckles of light surrounding Hitomi like a choir of angels lifting her towards Heaven...disappearing...  
  
She also remembered the moments that had followed that. Amano and Yukari pulling into the track and demanding where the light had came from and where Hitomi was. She could remember Yukari's face streaming with tears and yelling at her for not stopping her.   
  
Hitomi's mother, was a different story. She had such a calm face of understanding, of acknowledgement. As if she knew what her daughter was getting into and that she didn't need her help. Shuken never felt so helpless, so void since...since...  
  
...since she collapsed in the temple years ago.   
  
Shuken clenched her fist. "Dammit, Hitomi-chan! Why did you had to go?"  
  
"Shuken..." came a weak voice.  
  
"Hitomi? Why...I can see you!" she cried, suddenly seeing a ghostly picture appear before her. Shoulder-length honey brown hair, wide eyes..."What happened? Are you---"  
  
"No," Hitomi replied. "I'm on Gaea, a world similar to Earth. Listen to me, Shuken. You are the only one who understands but you are part of a balance between the world you are in and the world I am standing on. You see, I'm not returning."  
  
"But Hitomi! What about your mother? Yukari?"  
  
Hitomi fought the tears. "Tell my mother," she said sadly, "that I love her very much and that I will visit her whenever I can. Tell Yukari that I'm sorry and that I wish her much luck with Amano. I'm so sorry I won't be able to stay with all of you, but this is worth much more..."  
  
"But Hitomi---"  
  
"Shuken, have you ever been in love with someone so much, you would risk everything in your life, everything you ever had, every moment of being successful or being promising just for that one person?" Hitomi asked, her voice breaking up slowly. "Have you...ever dreamed that you would be together, but could never be truly together because of a barrier? Then you have this chance to be with that person forever...would you go for it, or hang back because of a few small things?"  
  
Shuken said nothing.  
  
"Please," Hitomi begged. "If you are my friend...you'll do it. For my sake."  
Shuken nodded empathically. "I understand, Hitomi-chan. Sayonara!"  
  
"Until we meet again, Shuken-chan!"  
  
  
Fanelia, Gaea  
The wind blew across the sweeping landscape that stretched across the horizon before Fanelia. The sun was now setting dazily into the horizon, the colours streaming like an oil painting as the Mystic Moon hovered nearby, like two globes of silver.  
  
Van caught Hitomi from collapsing onto the ground. He helped her up and maintain her balance before she stood up straight, gasping for breath, tears streaming down her face, still clutching tightly the pendant that Van had, that her grandmother had, that Allan's father had, that Van's people had forged from their skilled hands...  
  
"I can't believe you did that, Hitomi," Van said softly, shaking his head. "I know you love your family there...and all over me...no, no, no...why did you do that, Hitomi? Why? Now you're here...what can you do? This isn't your world. I can't ask you to stay."  
  
Hitomi smiled mutely before embracing him tightly. "But I stayed here by my choice, Van," she explained softly to his ear. "I love you enough to give up my life, my link, my future on Earth to be here. To live my life here. To finally rekindle the link here. For you to be part of my future."  
  
The wind blew again, sharply towards them.  
  
"I'm never letting you go again, Hitomi," Van told her. "Never."  
  
"Aishiteru, Van," she told him earnestly.   
  
"Aishiteru, Hitomi."  
  
They looked at each other for a brief moment. In their eyes, they both saw their future, the future of Gaea, their future together, from the beginning to the end. With a strange feeling of rebirth inside them, they kissed before looking up towards the techni-colour sky as the sun dropped slowly into the horizon. There, amidst the feathery clouds accompanied by the twinkling stars, was the Mystic Moon.   
  
  
***Now I just heard/  
The news today/  
It seems my life/  
Is going to change/  
I closed my eyes/  
Began to pray/  
And tears of joy/  
Spring down my face***  
~"With Arms Wide Open", Creed  
  
  
~End of Story  
I've enjoyed writing this---did u enjoy reading it? R&R and lemme know! 


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